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UV Pond Filter

A UV pond filter uses ultra violet light to kill e-coli and other bacteria as well as algae.

What it essentially does is sterilize the water in your pond.

And quite frankly, the use of or need for an uv pond filter signifies that there is a major problem in the design and/or function of the natural pond. Something is seriously out of whack.

In good pond construction, there is no need for this kind of filter system, the skimmer removes solids and the bio-filter deals with balancing the bacterial counts and changing bad guys to good guys
.
Those of you using your ponds as fish ponds to grow and maintain large numbers of fish and not trying to create and maintain a natural pond with plants have a real need for a uv pond filter

So if you want to sterilize your water with this kind of system, what are you looking for?

You want a uv system that will handle at least half of the flow rate of your pond pump every hour. This means if your pump is moving 500 gallons an hour, you want a pond filter that will handle 250 gallons an hour.

This table is a general guideline and is not meant to be the final word on all products. It is intended to give you a sense of how large your uv filter should be when compared to your water flow and pond size.

Size	Gallons/Hour	Pond Size/gallons
8W	500	<200
15W	700	200-500
25W	1200	500-1200
40W	2900	1200-2200
80W	3675	2200-4400
120W	4000	4400-6000
160W	5400	6000-8500
200W	6600	8500-13000
240W	7200	13000-17000

Maintenance

You want a system that is easy to maintain. If you can’t get it apart to change the light bulb (they do burn out more frequently than you might think – especially if outdoors) when it is on the store counter, it will not get easier when installed. This means you also want to install it where you can reach it easily.

String Algae

Your problem is not string algae. Interestingly enough, string algae is not usually killed off by these systems (although they are reduced).

Installation

You need to install the pond filter with a ground fault interrupter plug (gfi receptacle) to avoid electrical shocks.

The inlet and outlet of the filter should be as large as possible to eliminate the restriction and increased water pressure (both reduce the flow of water through the filter).

I hope this gives you some sense of uv pond filter systems and what to look for in purchasing one.


Click here to ask about a uv pond filter